Jersey City native Sharae Nikai has a big debut tonight, playing a doctor on ABC's soapy medical drama "Grey's Anatomy."

Nikai will play a doctor on the show, now in its 14th season. Speaking by phone from her Los Angeles home, Nikai told The Jersey Journal she was a bit intimidated donning scrubs alongside actors who have played medics for more than a decade.

"By this time they could probably be doctors," she joked.

Tonight's episode could be a major one for "Grey's Anatomy" fans, who fear Chandra Wilson's character, Miranda Bailey, will die after suffering a heart attack.

Nikai was mum when asked any details about the episode.

She grew up in the city's Greenville section, attending the St. Paul's elementary school and McNair Academic High School. The acting bug bit her while she attended New York University. Her strive for television fame led her on a cross-country trip from Jersey City to Los Angeles in a Pontiac Sunfire. She had just $1,000 to her name.

"It's amazing the car made it," she said.

Her screen credits include a Katy Perry video short and a one-episode stint on "Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23." She'd tried out for "Grey's Anatomy" four times before nabbing the role on tonight's episode. Her family is gathering tonight for a watch party at a cousin's house on Pearsall Avenue.

Nikai said her childhood in Jersey City sometimes feels "a world away" from her life in L.A.

"I'll be down on the street and see Lionel Richie at a stoplight," she said.

"Grey's Anatomy" airs tonight at 8 on ABC.

Terrence T. McDonald may be reached at tmcdonald@jjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @terrencemcd. Find The Jersey Journal on Facebook.